Biography

Soshana

1927 Soshana is born on September 1st in Vienna (maiden name: Susanne Schüller)

1933 she attends the Schwarzwald school in Vienna

1938 "Anschluss" - Annexation of Austria by Germany;
together with her parents and her brother she leaves Vienna, short stays in Switzerland and Paris

1939 she moves to England and attends the Northwood College

1940
she attends the Chelsea Polytechnic School in London, painting and drawing classes,
training in fashion drawing, air raid on London, series of paintings on the Blitzkrieg

1941
emigration to the US
she attends the Washington Irving High School, New York  starts painting under the guidance of Beys Afroyim

1944
she travels together with him through the US at the age of 17, portrays of authors, musicians, statesmen and scientists like Thomas Mann, Arnold Schönberg, Lion Feuchtwanger, Franz Werfel, Otto Klemperer, Bruno Walter, Theodore Dreiser, Hanns Eisler

1945
May: opening of the UNO in San Francisco, portrays of reputed delegates
stays in San Francisco and Los Angeles
marries the painter Beys Afroyim in Chicago

1945, Portrait of Mr. Kuznecov, Vasilij Vasil’evič, substitutional chairman of the UdSSR national planning commission;
ambassador of the UdSSR in China; first substitute of the minister of foreign affairs of the UdSSR

1946 birth of her son in New York

1948
first large exhibition in the Circulo de Bellas Artes, Havanna
for the exhibition she takes the name her husband had given: "Soshana"

1949
leaves the US, stays in Holland, Austria, England, Poland, the Czechoslovak Republic and Israel

1951
Study at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna

1952
Study at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna under the guidance of
Prof. Sergius Pauser, Albert P. Gütersloh and Prof. Herbert Boeckl.

1952
moves to Paris
moves into Derain's former studio, later on into the studio next Brancusi's at Impasse Ronsin
neighbourhood and friendship with Brancusi
acquainted with Kupka, Herbin, Zadkine, Cèsar, Pignon, Bazaine, Max Ernst, Yves Klein, Alexander Calder, Wifredo Lam, Sam Francis, Fontana, Gilioli, Jean Paul Sartre and the reputed Indonesian painter and philosopher Affandi
visits Chagall in St. Paul de Vence, is influenced by the Ecole de Paris and Informel

1953
works in Paul Gaugin's former studio (and previous Alfons Mucha's) in the Rue de la Grande Chaumière, Montparnasse;
friendship with Giacometti
meets Picasso for the first time in the Salon de Mai, invitation for Vallauris
exhibitions in various Salons: Salon de Mai, Salon d´Automne, Salon de Printemps, Salon des Réalités Nouvelles
exhibition in the gallery André Weil, Paris
start of the collaboration with gallery owner Max Bollag, Zurich

1954 portrayed by Picasso

1956
extensive travels to the Far East, to Asia, to India and to Japan
high interest in Indian philosophy, Hinduism and Buddhism
travels to India, portrays the Indian president Dr. Radhakrishnan

strongly influenced by calligraphy
studies art techniques on rice paper taught by Buddhist monks in Kyoto and Chinese painters in Hangzhou

1957
invitation to an exhibition in the Emperor's Palace, Beijing 1958

exhibition in the Henry Lidchy Gallery, Johannesburg and in Edouard Loeb, Paris

1959
travels to Africa
portrays Albert Schweitzer in Lambaréné, returns to Paris

works together with Pinot Gallizio
"Cavern of Anti-Matter", Galerie René Drouin, Paris

In a letter written by Galizio to his gallerist Otto and Heicke Van de Loo in Munich, he announced "that 20 paintings were made in September 1959 in Paris, together with Soshana", adding "resultat formidable".

In a letter dated 29th September 59, written by Soshana and signed by Gallizio, they say "that those works were seen with great interest by Parisian Gallerists Facchetti and Augustinci".

close contacts to the Cobra Group, among others to Karel Appel and Asger Jorn
collaboration with the O´Hana Gallery, London

1960
exhibitions in Brazil, South and Central America
first exhibition in New York and in the Mitsubishi Gallery, Tokyo

1962 exhibition in the Musée Picasso, Antibes, South of France

1963 exhibition in the Salon des Réalités Nouvelles

1964
start of extensive stays and exhibitions in Mexico
friendship with important Mexican artists like Rufino Tamayo, Siqueiros, Cuevos, Mathias Goeritz
lives in Guernavaca, Mexico
exhibition in the Krasner Gallery, New York

1965
meets Adolph Gottlieb for the first time
exhibition in the gallery Wolfgang Gurlitt, Munich

1966 exhibition in the Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico

1968
journey around the world, among others to the South Seas, the Caribbean, to Thailand, Bali, Australia, India, Sikkim, Nepal, Afghanistan, Iran and Israel
Portray of the King and the Queen of Sikkim

1969
concept of the three dimensional art from "Soma" in Paris, steel objects with relocatable magnets, design of acrylic glass objects
becomes a member of the theosophical society

1972 moves to Jerusalem

1973 the Yom-Kippur war starts on the day of the opening of her exhibition in the Old Jaffa Gallery, four planned exhibitions are prevented by the war.

1974
moves to New York
lives in Manhattan, among others in the Chelsea Hotel, studio in Queens
acquainted with Adolph Gottlieb, Marc Rothko, Francesco Clemente and the art patron Joseph Hirschhorn
nine single exhibitions

1985
lives and works in Vienna since 1985
acquainted with other artists she knows from her time in Paris such as Hans Staudacher, Hildegard and Harold Joos, as well as Trude Gill
works on different projects, the collection of video and audio tapes. written records on her life and the development of the international art scene

1987 Gallery Prisma, Vienna
Club Wien International, Vienna
art fair, Wien-Marriott, Vienna

1988 Gallery Prisma, Vienna
art fair, Wien-Kursalon, Vienna
gallery Glueck, Wels, Austria
travels to India

1989 art fair, Graz, Austria
"Dom Galerie", Wiener Neustadt, Austria
travels to Haiti

1990 Gallery Centre, Vienna
Castle "Hollenburg", Krems, Austria
"ABC Galerie", Obernberg/Inn, Austria
travels to Switzerland and France

1993 Gallery Prisma, Vienna
"Mensch und Energie", Kunsthalle Kongresshaus, Graz, Austria
travels to Mexico and Cuba

1994 Gallery Prisma, Vienna
Musée Matisse, France
travels to U.S.A.

1995 Gallery Max Bollag, Zurich
Fondation Lesur, Fresnoy le Graud, France
travels to India

Soshana on a ferry in Turkey, 1995

1996 Jewish Community Center, Vienna
travels in South America

1997 Retrospective, Palais Pálffy, Vienna

1998 Palais Harrach, Vienna
"Neue Galerie", Linz, Austria

1999 "Neue Galerie" Linz, Austria
Musée Matisse, Le Cateau-Cambrésis, France

2000 Gallery Prisma, Vienna
"Kanzleizentrum"/Jewish Community Center, Salzburg
Gallery Dumont 18, Geneva

2003 - 2004 Lentos Kunstmuseum Linz, "Paris 1945-1965"

2005 Kompetenzzentrum, Schottenring 10, 1010 Vienna

2006 Gallery Prisma, 1010 Vienna, Franziskanerplatz 1
Soshana - "Lebenszeichen" 1950-2006
Book presentation
Jewish Museum, Vienna

2006 - 2008 lives and works in Vienn, worldwide exhibitions

2 September 2009 -Soshana receives the Merit Award in Gold of the Province of Vienna

Both had suffered the terrifying and experienced the beautiful sides of the 20th century, highlighted City Council of Cultural Affairs Dr. Andreas Mailath-Pokorny in his speech on Wednesday. On the occasion of the presentation of high awards of the City of Vienna to the 82year old artist Soshana Afroyim (Merit Award in Gold of the Province of Vienna) and the 87year old psychologist and publicist Dr. Wilfried Daim (Medal of Honour of the Federal Capital) he expressed that both represented “an open-minded, humanistic attitude” even though they had different life stories. 

Source: http://www.wien.gv.at/vtx/vtx-rk-xlink?SEITE=020090902009

left: City Council of Cultural Affairs Dr. Andreas Mailath Pokorny; right: Soshana with Christian Kircher, Mag. Magdalena Gut and son Amos

>>Read the laudation held by Mag. Christian Kircher<<

27th May 2010 - Soshana receives the Austrian Cross of Honour for Science and Art. The award was presented to her by Dr. Bernd Hartmann, Austrian ministry of education, culture and art on May 27 in the Maimonides Centre.

12th October 2010

"Soshana. Life and Work." - The first comprehensive monograph on Soshanas life and work, edited by Amos Schueller and Angelica Bäumer, is presented in the Austrian National Library. Publishing house: Springer WienNewYork.

For further information please click on the cover:

9th November 2010
Opening of the exhibition "Soshana-Lebenszeichen III" in the Prisma Gallery.

4th October 2011
Exhibition "The Comeback of the Old Spirits" with Soshana at the Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna.
The idea of the production of a movie portraying Soshana was developed in cooperation with her. It shows the artist on her journeys and in her present life, constantly moving from memory to memory.